Washington County Trails

The highlighted City is Hugo.

The long, thin county that stretches all along the eastern side of the Twin Cities Metro is home to the Saint Croix River valley, Spring Lake's north shore, interesting inland terrain, and a surprising paucity of bike trails. Though that's not to say you can't find the odd bituminous pathway here. The nicest portions of the Gateway State Trail are here, the Brown's Creek State Trail, linking it with Stillwater, has just been completed.

_Afton to Lakeland TrailLength: 4.0
milesRating: 2
½ / 5Surface: AsphaltThis
aptly named trail is in the beautiful Saint Croix River Valley, a
place that should really have more trails. There's another trail that
crosses the 94 bridge to Hudson if you want river views, but this one
just cruises along next to the Saint Croix Trail (a road), passing through a
few micro-exurbs with little shade. The trail only gets interesting
close to Afton, when it makes a few diversions away from the road to
dive through some trees or cross the floodplain on a railroad grade,
the whole time surrounded by striking wooded hills.Though
the pavement could use more than a little touching up, the trail
flourishes with amenities like benches, signs, and (if you're hungry)
Saint Croix Pizza and Ice Cream.(Last biked Friday, October 12th, 2012, 4 PM to 5:30 PM)

Just completed in 2015, the Brown's Creek State Trail has already become the place to be -- the stream of bicycle traffic seems never-ending on nice days. But the trail deserves the traffic! It's a gradual descent via a railroad grade from the Gateway Trail to pretty and historic Stillwater. While the lightly wooded pseudo-suburbia of the western section is rather nondescript, the trail's highlight lies in its eastern section, where it parallels its namesake creek through a narrow ravine.(Last biked September 13th, 2015, 1 PM to 2 PM)

One of the oldest bike trails in the metro area, the Gateway Trail is still your best choice if you want to be quickly whisked from the inner cities to the middle of nowhere -- the perfect ride for the city-weary bicyclist. Beginning at Cayuga Street near downtown Saint Paul (it currently begins at Arlington Avenue; see alert)﻿, and following a converted railroad grade to Pine Point Regional Park in Stillwater Township, the trail is indeed a gateway from urban to rural. In Saint Paul and Maplewood, the trail follows a quiet tunnel of trees. It's worthwhile, but the condition of the pavement is subpar, and we could really use an exit at Wheelock Parkway. The portion in North Saint Paul parallels Highway 36, and is rather urban. It's only after passing under I-694 (the approximate halfway point) that the Gateway Trail gets really good. The scenery turns to countryside, with woods, wetlands and fields stretching around you. And the pavement is smoother, though you should watch out for horse poop (a horse trail runs next to the trail). (Last biked Saturday, August 23rd, 2014, 2 PM to 7 PM)

UPDATE: Due to the reconstruction of I-35E, the Gateway Trail is closed from Cayuga Park to L'Orient Street, effectively beginning at Arlington because the bridge over 35E has also been taken out. ﻿Here is a detour﻿ from MN-DOT. As of October 2016, it is still closed. It will soon connect to the Trout Brook Trail and University Avenue!

If you're coming all the way from the inner cities just to bike this trail, don't expect anything special. However, if you're from around here, you might find it a nice change from the area's more popular Gateway Trail. And if you're coming to bike this and the consecutive Sunrise Prairie Trail all the way to North Branch? Absolutely. Washington County's only regional trail follows an old railroad grade from Hugo to the county line a mile north of downtown Forest Lake, where it becomes the Sunrise Prairie Trail. Much of the trail is straight, flat, and parallels Highway 61 -- it's so boring that you could fall asleep while biking. However, in the town of Forest Lake, the highway curves away from the trail and the trail passes through a pleasant residential neighborhood. Washington County takes good care of its only child; the pavement is smooth, besides a few ruts from snowmobiles north of downtown Forest Lake.(Last biked Sunday, April 17, 2011, 2 PM to 4:30 PM)

This new rail trail goes from near Dresser, WI to Amery, WI. A quiet country jaunt, it passes seven lakes, woods, scenic hills and tiny towns with plenty of amenities. It receives much less use than similar rail trails in Minnesota, and therefore you will probably be alone on the trail and have a good chance of seeing wildlife like the deer pictured at left. (Last biked Saturday, July 22nd, 2012)